The Society of Christ Fathers 90th Birthday Celebration
Polish Community - September 2022
The Society was founded on September 8, 1932, by Venerable August Cardinal Hlond, Primate of Poland with the main goal to provide assistance and spiritual care to Polish migrants living abroad. The Society of Christ Fathers, often abbreviated to SChr is a male religious congregation consisting of priests, brothers and seminarians.
The spirituality of the Society of Christ is Christ-centered, meaning that members of the Society are to follow Jesus Christ in their lives and conform themselves to Christ. Their spirituality is also deeply Marian; Devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary is a means for members of the Society of Christ to inspire Poles living abroad to seek greater holiness through the imitation of Mary.
Religious priests and brothers travelled to new countries, to other continents, taking up pastoral work there. In 1976, the Congregation already had 124 religious houses and pastoral centres. Currently, the Society carries out its mission in parts of Poland, in 6 foreign provinces comprising 17 countries: Poland, Brazil, USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, France, Spain, Germany, Holland, Italy, Hungary, England, Ireland, Ukraine, Belarus.
The Society of Christ was first introduced to Australia by the Federal Catholic Immigration Committee in 1959 in the Diocese of Sydney, from Poznan, Poland. Currently there are 19 priests serving pastoral ministry to people in Australia and New Zealand. In foreign provinces, apart from the pastoral work, great importance is also attached to the cultivation of the patriotic spirit, social life and the Polish culture. This goal is being pursued by means of any media available (radio broadcasts in Polish, parish brochures and catholic periodicals, websites etc.)